Rotary engine.



No. 760,441. PATENTED MAY 24, 1904. W. G. FRITZ.

ROTARY ENGINE. LPELIUATIOH FILED MAR. 21. 1904.

1W0 MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

INVENZfOR' No.'760,441. V PATENTED MAY 24,1904. W'.'G.PRITZ.

ROTARY ENGINE. APPLIOATION IILED MAR. 21. 1904.

N0 MODEL,

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.-

WITNESSES" [willy/TOR omegyd Patented May 24., 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM G. FRITZ, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

ROTARY ENGINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 760,441, dated May 24,1904.

Application filed March 21, 1904- T0 at whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM G. FRITZ, a citizen of the United States,residing at Cleveland, in the county of Ouyahoga and State of Ohio, haveinvented new and useful Improvements in Rotary Engines, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to a rotary engine in which the impact, velocity,or head of steam orwater may be utilized to produce rotary motion of theengine-shaft.

The object of the invention is to produce an improved engine of the kindincluding particularly outside and inner cylinders between which asteam-chest is produced, the inner cylinder having therein a rotarypiston which receives the force of the driving medium through portsproduced in the inner cylinder, and from the piston passages lead to ahollow shaft, through which the driving medium is exhausted.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a longitudinal section of theengine. Fig. 2 is a cross-section. Fig. 3 is a perspective View of thepiston. Fig. 1 is a side elevation of the inner cylinder, showing theports.

Referring specifically to the drawings, 6 indicates the outer cylinder,which is closed by heads 7 and mounted upon a base 8. A steaminlet pipe9 enters the outside cylinder and is controlled by any suitable valve10, as indicated.

The inner cylinder is indicated at 11, arranged and supportedconcentrically within said outer cylinder by being bolted to the headsthereof. The inner cylinder is considerably smaller than the outer,forming an annular steam-chest, as indicated at 12, extending aroundbetween the cylinders. The inner cylinder has a plurality oflongitudinal slots 13 produced therein, inclined or arranged at an angleto the radius. These slots are regularly arranged the same distanceapart around the cylinder. They form inlet-ports from the steam-chest tothe piston.

To control the amount of driving fluid admitted through the ports, athrottling device is. provided consisting of rings 14, which are mountedto turn upon the inner cylinder at the opposite ends thereof. Theserings are Serial No. 199,097. (No model.)

split to permit of their removal when desired and are connected by bars15, which extend lengthwise of the inner cylinder and are of a widthsuilicient to cover the ports 13 when desired. These rings and the barscarried thereby maybe shifted by means of a screw 16, which extendsthrough the wall of the outer cylinder and through a bracket 17 formedon the inside thereof, and the inner end of the screw extends looselythrough a lug 18 on one of the rings 14 and has collars 19. By turningthe screw in or out the contact of the collars with the lugs 18 shiftsthe rings 14 and the bars 15 carried thereby one way or the other tocover or uncover the ports to the desired extent.

The piston is built up of a number of drums or disks each of which isformed of a plurality of segments 20. These fit and rotate within theinnercylinder,t11e segments being mounted upon the hollow shaft 21,which transmits the motion. The segments in each disk are spaced apart,forming passages therebetween, (indicated at 22,) which passages leadtolongitudinal slots 23, made in the wall of the hollow shaft. At theouter or peripheral endof the passages the several disks have undercutrecesses or pockets, (indicated at 24,) which receive the impact of thesteam or other fluid admitted through the ports 13. The angle of thewalls of these pockets corresponds to the angle of the walls of theslots to give a tangential impact, and for this purpose and effect thecorner of the succeeding segment adjacent the passage 22 is cut away, asat 25.

The exhaust is through the passages-22 and 23, and thence through thehollow shaft and openings 26 therein and into the annularexhaust-chambers 27 produced in the cylinderheads inside thestuffing-box through which the hollow shaft extends. The exhaust-pipes28 lead away from the exhaust-chambers.

The pockets 24; and cut-away portions 25 are of such size that theperipheral opening is equal to the width of the slots 13, and thevarious segments of the several disks or drums are so arranged that thepockets follow each other in succession around the piston, whereby someof the pockets of the piston are always in register with the slots 13and in position to receive the impact of the fluid therethrough. Thisinsures an even balance and driving action and enables the motor to bestarted at any point.

In operation steam or other fluid having a head or pressure is admittedto the steamchest between the outer and inner cylinders, and thethrottling devices being in open position the fluid enters through theslots 13 and by pressure or impact in the pockets rotates the piston andthe shaft upon which it is mounted, the exhaust or escape being throughthe hollow shaft and the passages from the pockets leading thereto.

hat I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination of outer and inner cylinders having a space between,the inner cylinder having ports therethrough, a hollow shaft in thecylinder, and a rotary piston on v the shaft having peripheral pocketsarranged cylinder driven by fluid admitted through said ports, oftherings on the inner cylinder having longitudinal valve-platestherebetween, arranged to open or close the slots, and means to shiftthe rings.

3. The combination with a cylinder having a chest for the driving fluidextending around outside the same, and a series of equidistantlongitudinal slots forming ports therethrough, of a hollow shaftextending through the cylinder, and a piston on the shaft comprising aseries of drums or disks each formed of a plurality of segments spacedapart, the hollow shaft having openings communicating with said spaces,said segments having pockets at the outerends of the spaces arranged toregister with the ports, the successive drums being so arranged that thepockets thereof follow each other successively to register with theports.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

WVILLIAM G. FRITZ.

Witnesses:

JOHN A. BOMMHARDT, LOTTIE NEWBURN.

